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"Small Pieces of Blackrock" need to be bigger and stack

Merlin

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Don't these fall into packs to prevent script mining?
 

Merus

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Don't these fall into packs to prevent script mining?
Honestly? If you really think that people can write scripts to:
Recall using various runes to different places
Detect weight limits
Smelt ore
Make additional mining tools
Drop ore into containers or into a bank

But are too stupid to figure out how to drop a piece of blackrock on the ground and thus give up scripting... You may want to re-think this.
 

Merlin

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Honestly? If you really think that people can write scripts to:
Recall using various runes to different places
Detect weight limits
Smelt ore
Make additional mining tools
Drop ore into containers or into a bank

But are too stupid to figure out how to drop a piece of blackrock on the ground and thus give up scripting... You may want to re-think this.
Clearly it's still stopping some people or atleast slowing them down.

One of my Fel neighbors is probably running something close to what you described... he has a chest on his steps and often times there will be small pieces of black rock littered all around... but occasionally, I will run by there and find a large pile of ingots laying on the ground along with the black rock. So there somewhere must be a bug that is tripping him up, which I presume is related to having to drop the small black rocks.
 

MalagAste

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If they really wanted to stop scripting and such of resources all they really need to do is make a script to detect how much ore anyone mines in a day and how many hours they are online...

If the person is online more than 18 hours a day and mines over X amount of ore or gathers more than X amount of lumber flag account for GM visits at random times and see what they are doing...

If the person in question is recalling to a plain flat plot with chests on the steps or in the steps or around the edge of the plot recalling in and out of that spot etc.... they are a script miner..... matters not what they say..... they are. Ban the account.

If the person in question lives in an actual house or is recalling to the bank find the persons house and check it... If they have tons of duped items ban the account. Not real hard either... and why they have never been able to stop these people is beyond me... NO real human plays over 18 hours a day every day... It's not rocket science. Humans need to eat, sleep and drink or they die. Bots don't do that.
 

CovenantX

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Clearly it's still stopping some people or atleast slowing them down.

One of my Fel neighbors is probably running something close to what you described... he has a chest on his steps and often times there will be small pieces of black rock littered all around... but occasionally, I will run by there and find a large pile of ingots laying on the ground along with the black rock. So there somewhere must be a bug that is tripping him up, which I presume is related to having to drop the small black rocks.

Trust me it's not slowing them down as much as it would slow down an honest player. you don't think scripts would find and remove these things faster than a player could?
... tisk tisk.
 

Lord Arm

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i wish they would of thought ahead of time with the new eodon quests and have power crystals stack
 

Merus

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IMO, there is far, FAR too much of the attitude of adding stupid ass **** with the idea that it will somehow deter scripters. Small pieces of blackrock for miners, shoes for legendary fisherman, randomized idoc times, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc....

Ultimately these kinds of things add far more benefit to the scripters and hose the average player. Scripts don't care how obtuse, tedious or time consuming a task is... Once it's scripted, it can run 23.5 hours a day for as long as it takes to acquire the goal... whereas the normal players just say screw it and either do without or buy it (very likely from the scripter).

In truth nothing about blackrock needs to change except where you mine it from. Make it so you mine blackrock (and only blackrock) from the black volcanic stone found in a few places and get rid of it from mining normal stone. Issue solved!
 

Victim of Siege

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Trust me it's not slowing them down as much as it would slow down an honest player. you don't think scripts would find and remove these things faster than a player could?
... tisk tisk.
They don't slow me down at all, my Blackrock organizer agent finds them really fast and dumps them in the container i choose. I love the functionality of the EC . . .
 

Merus

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They don't slow me down at all, my Blackrock organizer agent finds them really fast and dumps them in the container i choose. I love the functionality of the EC . . .
All EC is doing is a legal script performing the same function that UOA can also do. But to think it slows down illegal scripting at all is very naive. Those small pieces of blackrock have a use in UO, so they need to remain obtainable, but to justify them cluttering up your pack while mining for ingots because it somehow deters scripting is hogwash.
 

Victim of Siege

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All EC is doing is a legal script performing the same function that UOA can also do. But to think it slows down illegal scripting at all is very naive. Those small pieces of blackrock have a use in UO, so they need to remain obtainable, but to justify them cluttering up your pack while mining for ingots because it somehow deters scripting is hogwash.
i agree about the scripting deterrent, not effective if that's what they are supposed to do.
 

kelmo

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Sara Dale puts 'em in my mail box. >.<
 

Dot_Warner

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Pretty much everything that every dev team has done to "deter" scripting has only made the scripters a stronger force due to the fact they make whatever activity (logging, mining, fishing, etc) so tedious and cumbersome that a regular player would have to be desperate to do it.

Random wood/ore gave the scripters the monopoly on those resources - a regular player doesn't want to spend hours trying to gather a useable amount of resources. A script doesn't care, it will slave away without a care.

"Any way you want to win..." is the absolute worst attitude to have.
 

CovenantX

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They don't slow me down at all, my Blackrock organizer agent finds them really fast and dumps them in the container i choose. I love the functionality of the EC . . .
UO-Assist has this too but you need a container, and once you drop that container you'd need another one to set as your "Organizer" bag.
 

Hazel868789

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All BS would have to do "patch" everyday. Scripters would then have to upload the new "patch" to the scripting software. After the admins of scripting sites change the version of the scripts. Bing Bang BOOM, all gone.
 

Merus

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All BS would have to do "patch" everyday. Scripters would then have to upload the new "patch" to the scripting software. After the admins of scripting sites change the version of the scripts. Bing Bang BOOM, all gone.
Flawed logic... you can play UO without patching. Furthermore, you assume that those responsible for updating the software would not adapt... which history shows is not a realistic assumption.
 

Angel of Sonoma

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unfortunately the dev team said they were not planning to make blackrock stackable.

Question submitted to Mesanna during the Drachenfels Meet & Greet: The stacking box for grass and snow tiles is very useful, could you include small blackrock to be stacked in a similar manner?
Misk: Due to the varying tiles used with small blackrock, making them stackable is not a possibility, sorry

Developer Meet & Greet 2016 – Ultima Online EM Website Drachenfels
 

Hazel868789

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Flawed logic... you can play UO without patching. Furthermore, you assume that those responsible for updating the software would not adapt... which history shows is not a realistic assumption.
Make it so !!!! To easy. No patching, no gathering resources. No patch, no play. How hard is this?? Answer, it NOT hard. Terms of service update to include this.
Quick easy short updated file. I am totally sure BS knows what is updated in the scripters "baseline" software. If not, they should use the script, find out what is being updated to make the "baseline" scripters software work. Patch that file daily. Or even add a line to UO program, with daily randomized number within patch. Okay, end of my ranting. ((Laughing to self)) They already know. COMPARE files, how hard is that.
@Mesanna
 

Dot_Warner

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The devs already have the ability to make a patch mandatory, meaning the server won't let you log on if the client isn't up-to-date.

A simple automated encryption update every 2-3 days would wear down the script program's authors. Sure, they may still try to keep them updated, but it would be a loosing proposition.
 

Uvtha

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Misk: Due to the varying tiles used with small blackrock, making them stackable is not a possibility, sorry
That has got to be the worst reason ever. They use the same art as gems don't they? Even if there were 10 types (I don't think there are) it would be better than nothing.

If making them stackable is SO much work then just have them spawn as only one piece of art.
 

Eric Ravenwind

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As far as "scripters" go - I don't care about them at all. If they won't make them stackable, please make the blackrock graphic bigger so we can see them easier for pack organization purposes. Please..
 

Victim of Siege

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i don't see why they arent stackable, they are made using the gem grapics, which are all stackable. they should atleast stack with like kinds
 

Hazel868789

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Flawed logic... you can play UO without patching. Furthermore, you assume that those responsible for updating the software would not adapt... which history shows is not a realistic assumption.
So much for flawed logic. MUST patch to play.

Next step, small patch every day. Can only hope they are listening!!
 

BeaIank

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I'd like to see them to be stackable.
OK, they have a few different graphics, so then make each kind stack with themselves at least.
It is annoying to have to fetch 40 of them when you want to make 4 exodus daggers for the peerless encounter. If I could simply gather a stack of one of their kinds and do it, I'd be a much happier lass.
 

Spartan

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I'd like to see them to be stackable.
OK, they have a few different graphics, so then make each kind stack with themselves at least.
It is annoying to have to fetch 40 of them when you want to make 4 exodus daggers for the peerless encounter. If I could simply gather a stack of one of their kinds and do it, I'd be a much happier lass.
:thumbsup: I agree - even if different graphics, stack like ones! It makes a lot easier in so many ways.
 

Tyrath

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Watched a Scripter in the brit mining cave unload them suckers fast, was in awww at how fast the BR piled up at its feet, then I killed the bot. If it slows the script down it is only for a few seconds. Maybe just cut the chance of getting BR by 90% then it still available for its use in game and ceases to be a nuisance for legit miners.
 

Veldrane

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This is something potentially on the table for 95. It's not a simple "just" making the existing ones stack. Unfortunately the original implementation prohibits this so we have to look to other solutions. We hope to have more information in the future.
Any thoughts on making the stuff decay, it hangs around forever if it's dropped on the ground
 

Barok

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This is something potentially on the table for 95. It's not a simple "just" making the existing ones stack. Unfortunately the original implementation prohibits this so we have to look to other solutions. We hope to have more information in the future.
Start spawning a new kind of small blackrock that stacks and stop spawning the old stuff. So what if the old ones are now rare and the rare traders have a new item to collect and sell for millions.
 
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